Diary of a Serial Killer

Starring:Gary Busey, Arnold Vosloo, Michael Madsen, Julia Campbell, Reno Wilson, David Michaels, Marcy T. Kaplan, Patricia Skeriotis, Jazzmun, Erica Yohn, William Frankfather, Brien Blakely, Jeff N. Strong, Mario Roberts, Alexander Keith, Elisa Leonetti, Danny Kovacs, Dawn Landon, Michael Gabriel, Shawn McConnell
Director: Joshua Wallace
Studio: Allumination Filmwor
Product Type: DVD

Average customer rating:

Thumbs up!
THIS IS NOTHING LIKE HOSTEL
UGH........Boring
umm...wow!!!!!!!!!!.....ny god
Messed up

H6 - Diary of a Serial Killer
Starring: Fernando Acaso , Ruperto Ares , Miquel Sitjar , Angel Alarcon , and Mark San Juan
Director: Martín Garrido Barón
Manufacturer: Tartan Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Live Feed
Barricade
Calvaire: The Ordeal
Feast (Unrated) [HD DVD]
Rest Stop (Unrated Edition)

ASIN: B000FZEU3I
Release Date: 2006-11-21

Description

Antonio Frau, a convicted killer recently freed, inherits an old motel. Taking this as a sign to "cleanse" the women who inhabit the surrounding streets, he bestows his own brand of purification behind the locked doors of Room 6. The diary he keeps of every date, name, and unspeakable act details a journey into the hostile mind of a delusional psychopath.

Customer Reviews:

Thumbs up!.......2007-06-12

This is a really good movie. Unlike Eli Roth's, you have to actually THINK to understad and enjoy what's going on and why is this guy doing such things. Also, not as gore-ish as Hostel and I think thats great because you wont be distracted from the real trama of the movie.

THIS IS NOTHING LIKE HOSTEL.......2007-03-05

I don't know why people tend to over-simplify movies by making a lame, and usually completely inaccuare comparison to a great movie. When I read a review that says "its a *insert random country here*'s answer to Taxi driver" I cringe. Hey reviewers, Why not compare a serial killer movie to "Titanic" or "Sweet Home Alabama", It is no more asinine of a comparison.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that this is no "Hostel" and Reese Whither*whatever the hell her name is* is scarier than anything is this movie.

He's a rapist with a chainsaw. It will scare the hell out of you if you paid to see it and had high expectations. I don't mean to state the obvious or anything, but a horror movie have violence. All the death scenses are off-screen.

I enjoy horror movies and I have the stomach for it. What I don't have is an understanding of the purpose of all the rape scenes. It added nothing to the movie or the horror. In "Irreversable", it was critical, and you were meant to sit there in agony, completely montionless, this let you share the pain of the female lead and all that knew her, it also added countless layers of ways the viewer identified with the characters, and allowed Noe to draw you in. Here it is just superflous filth, I just don't understand it.

UGH........Boring.......2007-01-28

This movie claimed to be the Spanish version of Hostel, however I found it lacking. You don't see any sort of torture aside from blood splatter. He kidnaps prostitutes, straps them to a table and doesn't feed them for a few days. While they are held captive he asks them quesions about their belief system and their views of where their life took a wrong turn then proceeds to take poloriod pictures of them while they are bound to a table dressed in bra and underwear. I think it only shows 3 or 4 girls but the movie claims he did something like 18. He pours urine from a bottle on one girl. He has sex with the girls while he and the girls are clothed. Then he cuts them up with a chain saw which is where you see the blood splatter scenes. Now he does save some of the meat to cook up and feed to his wife. The whole time he keeps a diary and lures the police to find him so he can be famous.

umm...wow!!!!!!!!!!.....ny god.......2007-01-02

this film is good but deff violent......if your not into the violence..stay away...but like the other reviewer stated if you like ..hostel...then this is your movie....more violent than hostel...it made hostel look like a kids movie.....good for those who like blood...

Messed up.......2006-09-12

Man, just when you think you've seen all the brutal, messed-up scenes
you can, along comes a movie like this to shake you up. What's in the
water over there in Spain? Antonio Frau is a recently-paroled killer
who served his time but hasn't been very well rehabilitated. He
inherits an old brothel from some relative and he decides this is a
sign from God to kill hookers...and pretty much anyone else who he
deems "unclean". Of course, he doesn't just kill them, he "purifies"
them, which consists of a lot of torture and drawn-out pain until
finally dropping the chainsaw on them.

Admittedly, you don't see all the blood and guts, a lot of it is
insinuated, but in a way that's better. It sticks with you, the mental
images of what he does.

If you liked Hostel or are a big fan of really sick torture scenes,
this is a must-see!

Average customer rating:

More of an expose of human nature
...yours truly...
The diary was proven to be a hoax.
An OK Video About a Truly Dubious Diary
Into the Heart of Darkness Itself!

The Diary of Jack the Ripper
Starring: Michael Winner , and Tom Baker
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Similar Items:

History's Mysteries - Hunt for Jack the Ripper (A&E DVD Archives)
JACK THE RIPPER: PHANTOM OF DEATH
Jack the Ripper
History's Mysteries - The Strange Case of Lizzie Borden (History Channel)
Ripper Notes: How the Newspapers Covered the Jack the Ripper Murders

ASIN: 6305301727
Release Date: 1999-03-16

Amazon.com

In the 1890s in London, several prostitutes were murdered in ways so grisly and brutal that it terrorized the city's entire populace. Though the latest investigative techniques of the time were used, the murderer was never caught or even positively identified. The killer sent taunting letters to the police and newspapers, identifying himself as "Jack the Ripper," and the name has stuck for the past 100-plus years, even as Jack's true identity has been left to conjecture and speculation. In 1991, the murderer's purported diaries were uncovered, pointing toward middle-class Londoner James Maybrick as the man behind the killings. The Diary of Jack the Ripper retraces the killer's steps through dramatizations, while various experts assess and discuss the veracity of the diaries through handwriting examination, paper and ink analysis, and such. Though the evidence falls just short of nailing down Maybrick as the murderer, all the information does point in the direction of the drug-addicted man as the culprit. The diary contains information that could only be known to those on the inside of the cases. Where The Diary of Jack the Ripper falls short, though, is in its execution. The cheap-looking videotape dramatizations do little to capture the squalor of the Victorian London slums or the character of Maybrick himself. On the other hand, the film relies far too much on the rather gaseous commentary of various English talking-head historians and criminologists, who take an interesting topic and making it more like a classroom lecture. Still, true-crime enthusiasts should find plenty to like in this reexamination of one of the most notorious serial killers in history. --Jerry Renshaw

Description

After more than a century--out of the mists and fogs of Victorian London comes this astonishing new documentary. Reading from the infamous murderer's 63-page diary, a macabre record of obsession, horror and madness, Jack the Ripper's own words are the basis for this dramatized analysis, overturning all previous theories and investigations.

Customer Reviews:

More of an expose of human nature.......2005-09-18

What is most interesting about this video is the way different journalist sift the evidence.

There are two key items in the presentation:

1. A British government department did a forensic examination and dated the diary at the time of the murders.

2. Things described in the diary were kept secret by the police until recently.

The only conclusion that comes from these two facts is that the diary was written by either Jack or one of the few police detectives that knew the facts at that time.

...yours truly..........2002-01-04

One of the main reasons I give this video five stars is that this truly unique video doesn't try to exploit the idea of the diary's existance...in fact, it tends to discourage it's viability, and with the semi-plausible/almost laughable excuse for the diary's possesion, and if it weren't for the timeline, i would even suggest that the 'possesor' was also the guilty party...however, with this being impossible, we must accept the possibility that this is indeed the diary of Jack...no one knows for sure, and even by the end of many repeat viewings, i have yet to come to a conclusion myself...but one conclusion i can draw is that this is one of the most fascinating cases of a video featuring 'talking heads' actually talking...you see every point of view, you're given facts, both pro and con, and even if you are an afficienado of the ripper tales, i guarantee you will still get more insights,not to mention that slight chill up your spine....

The diary was proven to be a hoax........2001-10-15

The so-called diary of Jack the ripper was proven to be a hoax despite what one poster said.I guess that you can fool some of the people some of the time.Avoid this DVD.

An OK Video About a Truly Dubious Diary.......2001-04-28

I had never heard of the alleged diary before renting the video and I must say that it was an interesting diversion, but I felt almost guilty after watching it. Over and over again the document in question was treated as something actually written by Maybrick--something for which there is no evidence and something the man cannot come back from the grave and denounce.

I don't know a lot about the Ripper case, but I am a student of hoaxes and this alleged diary simply screams "hoax." Just some of the more obvious points:

1. We are told by one of the experts that little ink from Victorian days survives because ink evaporates and therefore, the ink used for the document was either genuine or would have to have been carefully recreated by an expert. Such is not the case, however. The fluid evaporates but the pigment does not. All one would need to do is add water to a bottle of dried pigment.

2. The handwriting not only doesn't match that of the Ripper or what is said to be Maybrick's writing, but is simply too modern in execution to be authentic. It lacks the characteristic flourishes that Victorians would have used even in informal writing. I was amused by the handwriting expert they consulted, as graphology is a pseudoscience on par with astrology. There simply is no logical basis for the statements she makes (example: a T with an elongated cross being a sign that the writer likes games).

3. The documentary holds that the word "Jewes" scrawled on the wall near one of the victims could also be read "James"--as in James Maybrick. This is offered as proof of his cleverness. Problem is that a pun has to make grammatical sense and this one doesn't.

4. Much is made of the supposition that Maybrick was a drug addict and consequently, ripe for schizophrenic behavior. Given that cocaine and opiates were available over-the-counter, lots of people would have fit that description. If legions of addicts did not commit such crimes under the influence of drugs, why would this one man have committed them?

5. The explanation that the missing pages in the diary were removed out of angst was ludicrous. It is far more likely the hoaxer found an old ledger that had been filled part way and simply ripped out the pages that had writing on them. The fact that the missing pages all preceded the "Ripper" text would seem to bear this out.

6. "Ha-ha" written in various places was a literary touch that a deranged person writing an actual diary would most likely not have used--but it certainly is in keeping with somebody wanting to sound deranged for their readership.

7. The composites of the Ripper looked nothing like the photos of Maybrick--the tip of the nose was entirely different! The only similarity was that both had a husky face and mustache, which is enough to implicate half the men in London at the time.

8. All of the references in the diary are old news. Again and again the documentary tried to prove its thesis by matching facts of the Ripper case to the diary, when it is the diary that seems to have been written to match the facts of the Ripper case.

These are just some of the obvious flaws in the Ripper Diary story--dozens of others cropped up while I was watching the video. It wasn't long before the whole thing took on a Shroud of Turin or Chariots of Fire feeling that made the documentary more of a shlockumentary. What is really sad, when you think about it, is that the name of yet another man who can't defend himself is being dragged through the Ripper gore.

Into the Heart of Darkness Itself!.......2001-03-15

It is a topsy-turvy inside-out back-to-front slippery-sick-and-poisonous catalog of facts that surround the life of Jack the Ripper! Admirably, this DVD documentary keeps to its primary objective: to conclusively identify the Whitechapel murderer!

To do this, the documentary examines The Diary of Jack the Ripper a text that documents the diarist's
(1) public-self and private-self divide; exacerbated by marriage to an attractive, younger, flirtatious, spirited woman
(2) determination to avenge the public insult caused to himself by what he judged to be his wife's public improprieties
(3) deepening rage and increasing loss of private sanity (while, characteristically, maintaining public composure)
(4) increasing belief in an answer to the 'problem'
(5) enactment of the complexly self-deduced answer i.e. the Whitechapel murders
(6) vicious reign of public terror accompanied by private glee, public games with letters to the public press for personal entertainment, narcissistic wonderment, cannibalism, and self-gratification
(7) sudden physical disintegration; the Whitechapel murders stop
(8) knowledge of his own imminent death
(9) signature (at close of text) as Jack the Ripper!

Additionally, the gross injustices to the young American wife (after the diarist's death) create weighty questions! The most likely answers to those questions also indicate that the diarist is the Whitechapel murderer!

Ignoring the conspiratorial and larger social issues that the questions raise, one lighter question persists: What about Doctor Fuller? Was he a hypnotist, drug counselor, a diagnostic incompetent or an early psychologist and genius? Whatever the answer, after the diarist's second consultation with Doctor Fuller, the Whitechapel murders stopped! The diary's madly-mixed shrieks and doggerel are replaced by the type of seductive requests for compassion that one would conventionally expect from an actor leaving the dramatic stage! What did Doctor Fuller say that brought this serial killer to his senses? Learning that answer would benefit medical professionals and police departments throughout the world!

Customer Reviews:

I want my 92 minutes back.......2007-02-25

This is, by far, one of the worst movies I have seen. I had hopes for the movie based on the initial credits - Gary Busey, Michael Madsen (who I like, rasberries to all of those who don't like his acting).

The movie starts out in a transvestite cabaret, with of all people - RUPAUL - aargh!
Then we are treated to a very frumpy looking Garey Busey in drag, not a pretty site at all (joke intended). Even cheesier is that instead of wiring himself to record conversations, Busey holds a giant tape recorder at his side and MIRACULOUSLY ENOUGH, gets PERFECT SOUND QUALITY OF A CONVERSATION 15 FEET AWAY!
Two scenes in this movie creeped me out, but I don't think this was intentional on the part of the director. ONE: Gary Busey putting on makeup in the mens room of the bar, surrounded by crossdressers urinating in standup stalls, getting advice on how to keep lipstick off of his teeth from Julia Campbell, TWO: Gary busey still in makeup, with earrings, smoking a cigar at home and looking like a typical country grandmother!

The interaction between the police officers was terrible and not realistic compared to so many other movies I have seen. Madsen's backstory wasn't done well at all, expect for about 10 seconds where he describes his daughter being killed by a serial killer. The "rookie cop" character writing wasn't done well, especially in the last scene when he declared Madsen's character dead in the car without even checking his pulse! There was no chemistry at all between Madsen and Wilson!

As far as Vosloo is concerned, I have to disagree with everyone who said he did a great acting job. I didn't know him from a hole in the ground before I saw this movie, and all I can really say is that he was creepy, but not as intended. Vosloo came across like a poor imitation of Nicholas Cage with a cheesy radio host voice.
He was completely unconvincing as a serial killer. Sorry! Plus, NOBODY is that lucky - murdering people in broad daylight and never getting caught - so the character was unconvincing as well.

This movie was edited badly, and I have to agree with one reviewer that I'd like to see an uncut version. For instance, Michael Madsen's character "watching the warehouse" is never explained, then all of a sudden he is dead in his police car for no obvious reason after changing the batteries from his pager to the "hard to find" tape player (WHAT?!) and entering his car to listen to the tape.
Then he's found dead? DID THE TAPE PLAYER EXPLODE? WHAT HAPPENED?!

In the second to last scene, Busey stabs the serial killer, so you assume he was killed, and all Busey has for him after he "rises from the dead" to appear at his book signing (and what did he use to make the book? 10 minutes of interviews??) is a cheesy, denture filled smile. What a joke! Plus, the freeze frame at the end was even more sucky. Freeze frame endings are so yesterday...

Overall, this movie was a complete waste of time. Busey's acting is so terrible as to be almost not worth mentioning and he is supposed to be the star!
If I didn't know better from the end credits, I would have thought this film was made for TV based on all of the bad shooting and empty plot.

I want my 92 minutes back.

DIARY-EA.......2004-12-06

Gary Busey and Arnold Vosloo star in this lukewarm thriller, diminished by a pedestrian script and its failure to really be a "diary". We don't really find out why Vosloo does what he does. While Vosloo's performance is effectively chilling, Busey is horribly miscast. His journalist role is weakly performed, and little conviction is evidenced in his relationship with Vosloo or his live in girl friend (the lovely Julia Campbell). Add Michael Masden (B movie's Bruce Willis) as a cop whose daughter was killed by a serial killer and Reno Wilson as his obligatory African American partner, and the soup thickens. Masden sleepwalks and Wilson tries to be Ice T. Wilson's actions at the end of the movie are highly unprofessional and hard to swallow.
This could have been a better movie with a tighter script and someone else in Busey's role.

pretty good.......2001-04-09

I kept getting the feeling that there was too much cut from this movie. I'd love to see an uncut version... of course, maybe it's just wishful thinking.. you know, that some of the holes in the movie would be filled in. Still, overall it's a good movie, if you can get past the little things (can't think of any examples right now, but just little things that they don't bother to explain).

ABSOLUTE TRIPE!.......2000-08-15

A saturday night walk to our local video store was about to change my girlfriend and my own life forever. Whilst browsing the shelves at the store we noticed 'Diary of a serial killer' staring screen legend mr gary busey. Once we arrived home we popped the dvd in the machine and off we went. Well, were do i start. This is without doubt the most badly acted and appalling movie ever made. Please find listed our reasons for hating this film:- 1) GARY BUSEY....his wooden acting is hilarious, check out some of his reactions when facing a deadly serial killer, like he has just met his granny for tea. He shows no real emotion when find dead bodies....his TEETH....his awful cheesy grins......his chunky brown cords 2) THE MISTAKES.....plastic bottle........putting in a stunt double for busey, with the most ridiculous wig on, check out when busey is knocked down by vosloo at the end....its not him lying there. 3) THE EXTRAS 4) THE DIALOGUE...for example 'i'm hungry, i'd like a hot dog'

THIS IS THE WORST FILM EVER MADE AND WE HAVE WATCHED IT 30 TIMES OR MORE IN 3 MONTHS......BUSEY < YOU ARE SO RUBBISH < YOU KEN BARLOW LOOKALIKE

Madness Explored.......2000-02-22

Like so many others, I too have become a recent Vosloo watcher and bought the DVD of this film for that reason. This is not a film I would have purchased ordinarily, nor would I have attended it in a theater. (I spend too much of my time keeping others alive to relish watching someone else trash viable young adults in the full bloom of youth and life). Still, one can hardly but appreciate the talent that went into bringing Stephan to reality on the screen. I have met two psychopathic personalities, one professionally while I was working on a neurology ward and one in private life while I was living in Egypt. In both instances in retrospect, I am especially amazed at the skill they exhibited in enlisting the cooperation of their victims--myself among others--in their enterprises. One not only believed in what they said and did, one actually WANTED to believe in what they said and did. Nor if I were to have a third encounter with such an individual could I honestly say I would be any the less vulnerable for the experience. Mr. Vosloo's characterization of Stephan is, therefore, not only creditable it is positively chilling. (One wonders how he went about preparing for the role.) His ability to show up virtually everywhere without warning was also effective (though not unpredictable given the genre). The only film I've seen wherein the character--in this case a female--was more effectively menacing, merciless, and everywhere is an Egyptian film in Arabic, entitled Shamps. Mr. Busey's character was also believable in that he entered a web of terror of his own volition (and probably arrogance) with Mr. Vosloo's very dangerous spider waiting for him in the middle of it. His ineffectual efforts to escape it and his ultimate involvement of others in the terror is also creditable. My only criticism of the film is that the story behind the title character's madness was neglected, religated to the experience of a disillusioned teenager--though recent events have proved graphically how violent and tragic that can become--this was, after all, the diary of a serial killer, and I would have liked to have known more about the making of such a madman. Over all, though I cannot honestly say I "liked" the film, I still thought it was a good one.

Average customer rating:

I want my 92 minutes back
DIARY-EA
pretty good
ABSOLUTE TRIPE!
Madness Explored

Diary of a Serial Killer
Starring: Gary Busey , Arnold Vosloo , Michael Madsen , Julia Campbell , and Reno Wilson
Director: Joshua Wallace
Manufacturer: Simitar
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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